Should kids be taught combat in schools

See if u can find a pill that will give u even
the slightest trace of bravery.

I think you're nuts, is what I think, David!

C'mon, Montana - don't pull punches, say what you reallyb think!

Ok, I'll try

Regardless of my state of well being,
the kids and everyone else
have the RIGHT to defend themselves.

Teachers' failure to teach them that
is the grossest negligence,
in that knowledge of geografy is of no use,
if thay have been buried UNDER it,
because of the ministrations of a homicidal maniac.

David

What, Montana? You don't agree that schoolkids ought to wear backpacks full of hand grenades, instead of books? I thought every responsible adult would want them to carry a shiv and learn how to gouge out a man's eyes. What; no tear gas, or socks full of nickles?

Waitaminute, now - I can't rule out the need for those nickel-filled socks...

Why am I not surprised that this is happening in Texas and that OSD is here waving his little flag?

The fact is that, despite all the media hype, schools are still among the safest places for kids. Perhaps because of that same media hype, we have this Chicken Little approach to the straw man issue of school safety.

U can be sure
that the CRIMINAL PREDATORS
agree with gun control with much greater INTENSITY
than u do, in that their LIVES depend on
their victims being as helpless as YOU wud render them.
David

Where the hell are the men with the butterfly nets when we need 'em?

They will be right back... They went to get a bigger net.

The more I read, the more I am convinced of a prevailing lunacy. Children go to school to learn under the guidance and protection of the school staff. The thought of teaching children such tactics seems totally out of place.

I am happy to see that most of the posters on this thread have the sense and intelligence to see the whole picture.



Yes, I am sure that Wild Bill would be proud of Calamity Jane and the others.

I don't know why I bother with you, David, why I allow myself to get drawn into these silly conversations. I've said it once, but, just to cover all bases, I'll say it again:

To teach kids self-defense measures is reasonable and worthwhile. I have no objection to teaching them marksmanship and firearm safety at an appropriate age (say, 14 and up?). But to suggest that a child who has not yet developed sound judgement about when it is appropriate or inappropriate to use deadly force as a form of self defense is not only self-defeating, it is criminal. I say self-defeating because now you are certainly running the risk of more shootouts between teenagers and -- in your scheme -- even pre-teens where in the past a simple school-yard scuffle would have sufficed. My objection to kids trying to rush an armed adult has the same ground -- the child's lack of good judgement. If you or I were faced with an armed adversary, we could probably make a pretty good judgement as to how to try and disarm him/her. (I'm giving you a lot of credit here, you'll notice. I'm not at all sure if I'm right in this.) We would be able to estimate at just what point it is safer to attack than to stand still as a target. I submit that persons of a certain age (under 18 or so) are not capable of making this fine distinction. They are simply too immature.

For the record, I am a gun-owner and no pacifist. As I recall, though, I was 14 or thereabouts before I was allowed to even handle a firearm, and then only under the strictest adult supervision. Good thing, too. I probably would have shot my own foot off without that supervision. I have served in the armed forces of the United States and, as an officer, have been responsible for training men in the use of all sorts of bang-bangs. I wouldn't hand a loaded gun to a pre-teen boy or girl any more than I would allow a suckling infant to play with a sharp scalpel.

That's why I came into this fray - to make a point that Merry just made. Teach them self-defense. Teach them conflict reslution. Teach them to be kinder and more empathic with their peers and communities. Do not teach them how to fight - it will instill fear and anxiety as well as provide food for brawls.

Exactly

From what I can get out of the article about this school, OmSigDAVID, this school is not advocating shooting armed assailants back with guns, but simply to hit them with whatever is at hand and bring them down with their body weight. It's an insane idea. At least hiding under a desk you stand a much better chance of coming out of it alive than rushing up to a guy (or girl,whatever) with a gun trying to tackle them down.

Yeah. They're basically being taught to be lemmings. The ones who rush first are more likely to be killed than if they stayed put, but they might make the landing softer for the rest. :-?

NOT what I want my daughter taught.

I wonder if those who advocate such things have children of their own.

I know how I'd bet, if I were a betting man...

Likely if they had any, they are now dead of gunshot wounds.